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Tag: Dr. Anthony Roberts

A graduate of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Dr. Anthony Roberts has worked as an ophthalmologist and surgeon for over two decades. At Shady Grove Ophthalmology in Rockville, Maryland, Dr. Anthony Roberts provides comprehensive eye exams and performs a variety of refractive procedures, including Lasik, laser cataract extraction, and refractive lens exchange.

Also called “clear lens exchange” or “clear lens extraction,” refractive lens exchange (RLE) is a vision-correction procedure that is typically reserved for older patients with refractive errors that cannot be adequately corrected with Lasik. During the procedure, which is very similar to cataract surgery, a surgeon removes the clear natural lens of the eye and replaces it with an artificial intraocular lens that improves the eye’s ability to focus.

RLE can provide rapid vision recovery without affecting the natural shape or thickness of the cornea. It also promotes stable vision and can greatly reduce a patient’s dependence on eyeglasses or contact lenses. Those who are candidates for the procedure include both farsighted and nearsighted adult patients with otherwise healthy eyes. Although major complications are rare, RLE risks include infection, increased eye pressure, and retinal detachment.

Since 2002, Dr. Anthony Roberts has practiced as an eye physician and surgeon at Shady Grove Ophthalmology in Rockville, Maryland. Dr Anthony Roberts draws on experience in LASIK and other vision-correction surgeries, including refractive lens exchange.

Refractive lens exchange, also known as clear lens exchange, replaces the lens of the eye as one would do for a patient with cataracts. In the case of refractive lens exchange, however, the patient has no clouding of the lens and is seeking the procedure primarily to achieve permanent vision correction. An option for nearsighted or farsighted patients who cannot tolerate contact lenses, refractive lens exchange can significantly improve an individual’s quality of life.

Refractive lens exchange has become possible thanks largely to the clinical advancements that have made cataract surgery safer. Many clinicians now recommend the procedure for older individuals with hyperopia, or farsightedness, who have severe symptoms or moderate symptoms with evidence of incipient cataracts. Nearsighted individuals may need more careful assessment, as these individuals carry a greater risk of retinal detachment, though innovative technology has made elective refractive lens exchange a newly viable option.

The official ophthalmologist for the Washington Redskins football team, Dr. Anthony Roberts is the founder of Maryland-based Shady Grove Ophthalmology. An eye physician, he provides his patients with a number of treatment options, ranging from comprehensive eye exams to various forms of eye surgery, including LASIK. Among the procedures that Dr. Anthony Roberts provides is cataract surgery.

Cataract surgery is the most commonly performed ophthalmologic procedure in the world, with around 20 million of these surgeries completed each year. Following are three frequently asked questions and answers about what to expect after undergoing cataract surgery.

Q: How long will it take for my vision to be restored after the procedure?

A: Full recovery time varies from one person to another. Some patients will regain their sight the next day, and for others, recovery may take several days, a week, or even a month.

Q: Can patients drive themselves home after cataract surgery?

A: Most professionals recommend that patients arrange to have another person drive them home after the procedure, especially if vision in the unaltered eye is poor. At some ophthalmologic practices, patients are required to have another person transport them home after the procedure.

Q: Do patients have to wear any protective covering over the treated eye?

A: Yes, most doctors will provide patients with a plastic protective shield or patch to wear over their eye after surgery. They will protect the eye from being accidentally bumped or rubbed, which can cause enough pressure to open the surgical incision.

Dr. Anthony Roberts, an eye health specialist, provides a variety of treatments for common eye conditions. Additionally, for patients who qualify for the procedure, Dr. Anthony Roberts performs Lasik surgery.

For many individuals, Lasik surgery, a type of surgery that uses a laser to correct vision, can provide good results. However, certain individuals are not good candidates. Doctors look at a number of factors when determining a person’s suitability.

To start, the person should be over 18 years of age and in good health overall. This includes eye health, as having conditions such as glaucoma, herpes zoster, and others can disqualify a person. People who have ongoing issues with eye dryness and whose vision is unstable should not get the procedure, and pregnant and nursing women should wait for a period of time as advised by their doctor. This is because hormones during this time can affect vision.

Other factors doctors evaluate include the thickness of the patient’s corneas, as people who have corneas less than around 0.5 millimeters thick shouldn’t get the surgery. The doctor must deem the person’s farsightedness, nearsightedness, or astigmatism to be treatable through the procedure as well. An eye doctor can check for these and other important factors during a consultative visit.

Dr. Anthony Roberts is a Rockville, Maryland, physician who leads Shady Grove Ophthalmology and offers LASIK treatments. Experienced in employing advanced technologies in vision correction, Dr. Anthony Roberts undertakes the majority of LASIK procedures using the femtosecond laser, which offers a host of distinct advantages over other techniques.

Femtosecond laser systems are infrared and were first developed for ophthalmic use in the 1990s. They employ an ultrashort pulse of light that is achieved through passive mode locking. Finely tuned application of these ultrashort pulses results in a quickly expanding cloud of ionized molecules and free electrons, like an acoustic shock wave.

This is used to perform a variety of procedures, including corneal refractive surgery, particularly for correcting presbyopia and implanting intrastromal corneal ring segments. Femtosecond lasers are also used in LASIK procedures to cleave the cornea over the pupil and create what is known as the “LASIK flap.” Advantages include the reduced incidence of flap complications and greater physician control in determining variables such as flap thickness and diameter.

Dr. Anthony Roberts, founding physician at Shady Grove Ophthalmology, treats patients with a wide variety of vision difficulties. Dr. Anthony Roberts offers Lasik as well as nonsurgical therapies for myopia and is extensively experienced in the treatment of presbyopia.

Presbyopia, or farsightedness, is traditionally a condition of middle and older age. In a healthy and young eye, the ciliary body adjusts the thickness of the crystalline lens so that a person can focus on an object close to the body. Around the age of 40, however, the ciliary body muscle begins to break down and the crystalline lens begins to harden.

Lately, however, ophthalmologists and opticians in Japan have begun to notice an increase in presbyopia symptoms among young adults. A recent survey suggests that while only 0.5 percent of individuals aged from the late teens to 34 reported such symptoms in 2012, more than 6.6 percent did so in 2013. Eye care professionals believe that this increase may be largely due to this population’s near-constant use of smartphones, which invite a sustained focus on a small screen.

Staring at a close object causes the ciliary body to stiffen, thus decreasing the ability of the eye to adjust when switching from near to far vision and back again. Known as adjustment tension, this process is most often temporary but may become permanent in more severe cases. Some ophthalmologists have responded to this trend by calling for a reduction in the extended use of mobile devices and an increased focus on personal eye care.

Dr. Anthony Roberts has worked as an eye physician at Shady Grove Ophthalmology in Rockville, Maryland, since 2002. In this position, Dr. Anthony Roberts addresses a number of eye conditions, such as myopia and dry eyes.

While a number of environmental factors can cause a person to experience dry eyes for a period of time, certain medical conditions can lead to a dryness in the eyes that does not dissipate until treated by an eye physician. The primary cause of dry eyes is a lack of tear production. Although some people might assume that tears are simply a mixture of water and salt, tears also contain important fatty oils and mucus that help the eyes maintain a smooth, clear texture. Tears also defend eyes against potential infections.

There are basically two causes of dry eyes. In certain cases, a person is incapable of producing enough tears. Officially known as keratoconjunctivitis, lack of tear production can be attributed to advanced age, medical conditions such as diabetes or vitamin A deficiency, and damage to the tear glands due to inflammation or radiation.

In other cases, a person might produce a sufficient amount of tears, but they may evaporate quicker than normal. These situations are often more temporary than instances of decreased tear production. For instance, wind or smoke in the air can cause tears to evaporate faster than normal, as can periods of intense concentration. However, conditions affecting the eyelids like ectropion and entropion can also lead to tear evaporation.